Microsoft & Google execs join presidential tech panel
Senior executives from Google and Microsoft have been appointed to the advisory group which helps the US President formulate science and technology panel. There’s also a new blog from the government office dealing with such issues.
The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology is a 20-strong panel, set up in 1990, which exists to advise on “the many areas where understanding of science, technology, and innovation is key to strengthening our economy and forming policy that works for the American people.”
Among the new appointees is Eric Schmidt, the CEO of Google. He’d been a keen backer of Barack Obama during his election campaign and served on the presidential transition team.
Schmidt had previously said he was not interested in taking over the separate role of Chief technology Officer in the Obama administration. However, there’s no evidence that Schmidt was ever a candidate for the role, and he was simply responding to speculation that he might make a suitable candidate.
Microsoft’s chief research and strategy officer, Craig Mundie is also among the appointees. He’s no stranger to government bodies, having been part of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee since 2000.
The majority of the remaining panel members come from a science background, though the computing world is also represented by William Press, the Professor of Computer Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin.
Meanwhile the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the government office which deals with the subject, has launched a blog to encourage public feedback. It’s first major request is for public views on a statement of principles to ensure the integrity of the way science is used to inform public policy. Barack Obama described the blog as “a small step, but one that is creating a more transparent, participatory and democratic government.”
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